Five-Spice Chicken with Beans

Five-Spice Chicken with Beans

Ingredients

Rice

  • 1 ½ cups chicken broth

  • 1 cup white rice

Chicken & Marinade

  • 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, thinly sliced (if using breasts, halve them horizontally, then thinly slice crosswise into strips)

  • 1 tbsp. soy sauce

  • 1 tbsp. Shaoxing wine, dry sherry, or white wine

  • 1 tbsp. Chinese five-spice powder

Stir-Fry

  • 3 to 4 tbsp. fermented black beans (I buy mine online but they’re also widely available in Asian markets)

  • ¼ cup Shaoxing wine, dry sherry, or white wine

  • 4 tbsp. peanut oil or other neutral oil

  • 12 oz. green beans, trimmed, then sliced on an angle into 1-inch pieces

  • 2 shallots or 1 small onion, thinly sliced

  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped

  • 1 piece (1 1/2 inches) peeled fresh ginger, finely chopped or cut into thin matchsticks

  • 2 tbsp. black bean sauce or hoisin sauce

  • 2 tbsp. soy sauce

  • A splash of Chinese black vinegar or rice vinegar

  • ½ to 1 tsp. chili-garlic paste (optional)

  • 1 tbsp. toasted dark sesame oil

  • 1 bunch scallions, trimmed, thinly sliced on an angle (whites and greens)

Directions

  • Step 1

    In a small pot, bring the broth to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the rice. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork.

  • Step 2

    In a resealable plastic bag, place the chicken and the marinade ingredients; toss to coat and seal the bag. Let marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes.

  • Step 3

    In a small bowl, cover the fermented beans with the wine.

  • Step 4

    In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tbsp. oil, two turns of the pan, over medium-high. Add the green beans and shallots. Stir-fry for 5 minutes. Stir in half of the garlic and ginger. Stir-fry until fragrant, a minute or 2. Transfer the green beans to a platter.

  • Step 5

    Return the pan to the stovetop and heat the remaining 2 tbsp. oil, two turns of the pan, over. medium-high. Add the chicken, the remaining garlic and ginger, the black bean sauce, soy sauce, black vinegar, and chili-garlic paste, if using. Add the green beans back to the skillet; toss. Add the fermented bean mixture and toss again. Add the sesame oil and scallions; toss to combine. Stir-fry until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.

  • Step 6

    Divide the rice among shallow bowls; top with the chicken.